gerontologywikiaorg-20200214-history
Fauja Singh
Fauja Singh (born 1 April 1911?) is noted as an Indian-born British centenarian athlete, although his age has not been validated. Note: the ages given in the below article assumes that the age is correct, but has not been proven as such. Biography Fauja Singh (born April 1, 1911?) He is considered a century-old British athlete born in India, although his age has not been validated. 'Early life' Singh was declared born in India in 1911 as the youngest of 4 children. However, a letter from Indian government officials stated that no birth records were kept in 1911. As a child, his legs were thin and weak, and he could barely walk long distances. As a young man, he ran, but gave up as a young man. However, after his son's death, he decided to start running again as a tranquilizer. Singh, who worked as a farmer in Punjab before moving to Britain in 1992. 'Later life' At 89, he finished an international marathon. Singh ran his first race, the London Marathon, in 2000. According to his trainer, he used to run up to 20 kilometers with ease and wanted to run a marathon, thinking it was only 26 kilometers and not 42 kilometers. It was after he realized this that he started to train seriously. At 93, Singh completed a marathon. At 100, Singh tried and achieved eight records in one day at the Ontario Masters Association's Fauja Singh Invitation Meeting, held at Birchmount Stadium in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. setting five world records for his age group in one day. Some events had no previous record, as no one over the age of 100 tried to distance. Some of its brands are also significantly higher than the world record listed in the M95 age group. Three days later, on October 16, 2011, Singh became the first 100-year-old man to finish a marathon, completing the Toronto Marathon. However, Guinness World Records refused to include Singh in its record book, because he was unable to produce his birth certificate to prove his age. Birth records were not kept in India in 1911, however, the records written in Urdu are dated February 23, 1879. He managed to produce a passport listing his date of birth on April 1, 1911 and a letter from the queen Elizabeth II congratulating him on his 100th birthday. In October 2011, Singh, a vegetarian, became the oldest man to appear in a PETA campaign. In July 2012, Singh carried the Olympic torch. Singh said he would retire from the competitive race after participating in the Hong Kong marathon on February 24, 2013, five weeks before his 102nd birthday. He completed the 10-kilometer run in the Hong Kong marathon. Singh was awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) in the New Year 2015 for services to sport and charity. Singh is 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) tall and weighs 52 kg (115 lb). He attributes his physical fitness and longevity to abstaining from smoking and alcohol and following a simple vegetarian diet. References *Fauja Singh Centenarian Athlete *oldest-marathoner-at-108-is-a-mode Category:India births Category:1911? births Category:Centenarian athletes Category:Articles requiring cleanup Category:British centenarians Category:Living people